Incredible Poet Proves Just How Influential Teen Girls Can Be

April 15, 2015 6:41 PM

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The proclaimed "birth place" of slam poetry, this Jazz bar in the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago became a mecca of sorts once Marc Smith--the "inventor" of the art--brought his creation through it's doors back in the 1980s (Marc Smith will actually be hosting an event to celebrate the 25th anniversary of slam poetry's creation at the Metro in Chicago on July 30th). As the story goes (or one of them, anyway), Smith was working construction in the '70s and was trying to get published by prominent literary magazines, however his work was never accepted. Smith, tired of this constant rejection, decided to create "slam poetry" in order to give himself--and people in his position--an opportunity to have their work heard, to own what they had created (above is a video of Smith performing at the Green Mill). Since then slam poetry has gone on to become a worldwide phenomenon, and 25 years later the Green Mill still hosts weekly poetry slams every Sunday.

Founded in 2003 by Terry Creech and known for producing some of the most competitive and successful slam teams in the nation (back to back National Poetry Slam Champions in 2007 and '08), Slam Charlotte is a slam event presented by Blumenthal Performing Arts once a month at the McGlohon Theater in S...